CJA warns of Canada’s new anti-spam legislation

by eyetee | June 5, 2014 2:41 pm

[1]Canada’s new Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) comes into effect July 1 and the Canadian Jewellers Association (CJA) is helping you navigate the rules.

Published by the Retail Council of Canada (RAC) and developed in conjunction with Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg, the Anti-Spam Resource Guide applies specifically to retailers, although it is useful for any type of business.

CASL is designed to help curb unwanted directed electronic messages with the intent of encouraging a commercial activity. Here’s what you need to know:

• The law places restrictions on the sending of commercial electronic communications and dictates what information must be included in any electronic message.

• The law may apply to the following communication tools: e-mails, text messages, instant messages, Facebook messages directed to a particular user, and other social media tools whose purpose is to encourage customers to purchase your goods or services.

• Any business sending certain electronic communications (referred to as ‘Commercial Electronic Messages’ or ‘CEMS’ in the legislation) must have consent from the consumer prior to sending. The legislation sets out two forms of consent that are acceptable.

• One form of consent is implied consent, which means the customer has not specifically agreed to receive e-mails or other electronic messages from your business, but you have an existing relationship with the customer. Consent may be implied where the customer has purchased a product or service from you in the preceding two years or made an inquiry within the preceding six months.

• Another form of consent is express consent, which means the customer has specifically agreed to receive electronic messages from your business. Examples of how companies may obtain express consent include;

i) Allowing customers to sign up for e-mails, newsletters, etc.;

ii) Signing up in conjunction with a coupon offer or contest (as long as contest entry is not conditional on signing up for such communications);

iii) Having a sign-up process at the point of sale; and

iv) Asking for permission over the phone.

• Retailers must keep records of their customers who have agreed to receive electronic messages and be able to prove that consent (whether express or implied) was received.

• The law dictates what must be included in messages to customers. This includes clearly providing contact information for the entity sending the message and an easy-to-use no-cost unsubscribe mechanism.

• The law also applies to electronic messages originating outside Canada.

• Businesses and individuals may be subject to significant fines of up to $1 million for individuals or $10 million for a corporation for non-compliance.

For more information, visit http://www.retailcouncil.org/sites/default/files/private/CASL-workbook.pdf,[2] or contact Lindsay Taaffe, CJA’s director of marketing and member services, at (416) 368-7616 ext. 222 or lindsay@canadianjewellers.com[3].

Source URL: https://www.jewellerybusiness.com/news/cja-warns-of-canada-s-new-anti-spam-legislation/

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